The Millennial

Justin Avers, 30

Senior Business Analyst at a Startup
Income: $150,000

Profile

Justin liked the ﬂat fee model and thought it was important to understand exactly what his ﬁnancial picture looks like from all angles as part of the process for purchasing his ﬁrst house. His main priorities were to see whether or not he was missing out on any opportunities for better savings or growth in his planning and to determine an appropriate price range and down payment for his ﬁrst home. He was also curious to get a professional perspective on his investment strategy as he was granted a signiﬁcant amount of restricted stock options from his company and had the option to buy more. Justin is also interested in evaluating his work beneﬁts to see whether is enrollments are actually in line with his goals.

Plan Options To Consider

In doing the initial analysis of Justin’s work benefits, we noticed that he had a substantial chunk of money in savings, but the rate was rather low. Investigating other rates including online banks would be prudent for these funds. We also noticed his insurance premiums on his car and renters insurance policies seemed high, so we suggested he discuss getting new quotes on these from a broker. We also suggested he talk with a tax advisor to ensure his tax withholding on his paycheck were appropriate. Talking through Justin’s work benefits, we examined his elected insurance benefits for appropriateness, as well as any potential gaps in coverage that he could search for outside of his benefits. When moving on to retirement benefits at work, it was important to examine his contribution rate and the company match to see if these were being maximized. We also suggested Justin speak with a mortgage broker to discuss his lending options, and from that we could discuss the potential options for down payment sources among his accounts and assets. It was important that Justin had enough information to make a decision considering liquidity needs, tax implications, future growth potential and long term/retirement asset needs, and maintaining a healthy cash reserve.

The client experience described may not be representative of any future experience of our clients, nor considered a recommendation of the advisor’s services or abilities or indicate a favorable client experience. Individual results will vary. Strategies mentioned may not be suitable for every individual.

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